Rev. Dina Gardner of Novato Human Needs Center dies of cancer at 40

The Rev. Dina Gardner, a Presbyterian minister who was development and outreach director for the Novato Human Needs Center, died on Friday at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. She was 40.

She had gone to the hospital in the hope of entering a clinical trial in her fight against cancer.

Rev. Gardner, a resident of San Rafael, had been with the human needs center for the past five years, doing fundraising and working in the community.

"She was a huge asset to our organization and just a delight to work with," said executive director Deanna Euritt, adding that Rev. Gardner is particularly missed now, during the center's annual Holiday Share program for low-income families, which she helped organize every year.

In an Independent Journal story in March, when her friends and family organized a series of fundraisers for her medical expenses, Rev. Gardner, a graduate of the San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, said she was drawn to the ministry because, "I really wanted to companion people in the sacred and powerful moments of their life."

A spiritual life coach, she did premarital and intuitive counseling, non-denominational weddings and pastoral services for churches and organizations, including hospice.

"She helped a lot of people in this county," Euritt said.

In 2011, Rev. Gardner was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that spread from her hip to her lungs. As she fought against the disease, she went on medical leave from her job at the human needs center in June.

"She did everything she possibly could to beat this aggressive form of sarcoma," Euritt said. "She did leading-edge and traditional treatments. She gave it everything she had, she was a fighter, but nothing seemed to stop this aggressive form of cancer."

A friend, Beth Brown, spent a great deal of time with her during her final months.

"She was the most gracious and loving person I've ever met," she said. "In the face of a doctor giving her not good news, she would write him an elegant thank you note for his honesty and integrity. She continued to amaze me, the way she approached this part of her life with such grace."

Before taking her post at the human needs center, Rev. Gardner was an adjunct professor of ethics at the University of San Francisco. She spoke Spanish fluently, and once accompanied members of the Sausalito Presbyterian Church to the Mexican city of Leon, where they helped at a home for abandoned children.

Rev. Gardner grew up in Davis and graduated from Davis Senior High School in 1990. She was ordained at Davis Community Church in 1999, the same church where her memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. Dec. 27. The church is at 412 C St.

She is survived by her husband, Edgar Meza of San Rafael; her mother and stepfather, Barbara and Bill Greene of Davis; her father and stepmother, Russell and Lauren Gardner; a brother, Patrick Gardner of El Cerrito and several nieces and nephews.